High-temperature rapid processing has rapidly spread as a means of developing photographic materials in recent years, and the processing time thereof has been greatly shortened for various photographic materials by using automatic processors. In order to achieve rapid processing, there must be provided a developing solution capable of imparting sufficient sensitivity in a short period of time and a photographic material which is excellent in development speed and which gives a sufficient density in a short period of time. Further, the photographic material must have characteristics such that it may be dried in a short period of time after rinsing. A common method which is often used to improve the drying characteristics of photographic materials is one in which a sufficient amount of a hardening agent (e.g., gelatin crosslinking agent) is previously added during the coating stage of the photographic material and the swollen rates of the emulsion layers and hydrophilic colloid layers are lowered during the development-fixing-rinsing stage to thereby reduce the water content of the photographic material before the commencement of drying. When a large amount of a hardening agent is used in this method, the drying time can be shortened. However, since the swollen rates are lowered, there are the disadvantages that development is retarded and hence sensitivity is lowered, contrast is lowered, and covering power is lowered. Even when development progress can be improved, the retardation of the fixing rate caused by the use of a large amount of a hardening agent poses the problems of residual silver, residual hypo and residual color from sensitizing dyes. Thus, the shortening of processing time causes problems.
Methods for increasing the development activity of processing solutions are also known. The amounts of the developing agents or auxiliary developing agents in the developing solutions can be increased, the pH of the developing solutions can be increased or the processing temperature can be raised to increase development activity. However, these methods have disadvantages in that such methods damage the preservability of the developing solutions, contrast is lowered, and fogging is likely to be caused, though sensitivity can be increased.
Methods using tabular grains are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,439,520 and 4,425,425 to improve the above-described disadvantages. JP-A-63-305343 (the term "JP-A" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application") and JP-A-1-77047 disclose methods for improving development speed and the ratio of sensitivity/fog by controlling the development initiation point of silver halide grains having a (111) face to the apex of the grain and/or the edge thereof and places in the vicinity thereof. Further, JP-A-58-111933 discloses a photographic element for radiography which has a high covering power and by which one can dispense with the use of additional hardening agent during processing by making the swelling ratio of the hydrophilic colloid layer containing tabular grains 200% or lower. These known methods are excellent and of great use in the improvement of development speed of the photographic materials. However, when the processing time of the development, fixing and rinsing stages is shortened, the problems of fixing, residual silver, and residual hypo grow more and more serious, in addition to a lowering in photographic sensitivity. Further, the problem of residual color comes to the fore when photographic materials are spectrally-sensitized by sensitizing dyes. The improvement by the modification of silver halide grains has its limit except for photographic characteristics. Finally, it results in the problem of the quality of the layers. Namely, the thickness of the hydrophilic colloid layer determines fixing and residual color properties and hinders rapid processing.
In this respect, JP-A-64-73333, JP-A-64-86133, JP-A-1-105244, JP-A-1-158435 and JP-A-1-158436 disclose methods wherein the amount of gelatin in the hydrophilic colloid layer side including silver halide emulsion layers is adjusted to a value in the range of 2.00 to 3.50 g/m.sup.2. This adjustment of the amount of gelatin is combined with other methods to thereby achieve ultra-rapid processing where the total processing time is from 20 seconds to less than 60 seconds. Further, JP-A-2-68537 discloses a method wherein the ratio by weight of the silver of the sensitive silver halide to the gelatin (silver/gelatin) coated on the emulsion layers is controlled to be not lower than 1.5 to thereby achieve ultra-rapid processing. Furthermore, JP-A-63-221341 discloses a method wherein silver halide grains in the emulsion layers are predominantly composed of tabular grains having a grain size of at least 5 times the thickness of grain, the amount of gelatin is controlled to 2.00 to 3.20 g/m.sup.2 and the melting time is from 8 to 45 minutes to thereby achieve ultra-rapid processing where the total processing time is from 20 seconds to less than 60 seconds.
These prior art methods have been examined, and it has been found that when the amount of gelatin is reduced or the ratio of silver to gelatin is increased while the coating weight of silver is kept constant, mar blackening or roller marks seriously worsen and reach a level which is not practically acceptable. Accordingly, it has been found that photographic materials capable of being ultra-rapidly processed can not be obtained.
The term "mar blackening" as used herein refers to the phenomenon that when films are handled, films are rubbed with each other or with other materials and blackened areas in a marred form are formed after development. The term "roller marks" as used herein refers to the phenomenon that when photographic materials are processed in automatic processors, pressure is applied to the photographic materials by fine unevenness on the surface of a conveying roller and, as a result, an unevenness in density is formed in the form of black spots. When the processing time is properly divided among the development, fixing and rinsing stages in the case of rapid processing where the total processing time is set at 60 seconds or less, particularly 40 seconds or less, there is often interference with the drying characteristics of the material when automatic processors are placed under high humidity conditions unless the coating weight of gelatin is 2.5 g/m.sup.2 or less. Such a reduction in the coating weight of gelatin is not acceptable from the viewpoints of mar blackening and roller marks.
Performance with regard to drying characteristics, pressure property and fixing (or residual color) can not be satisfied by controlling only the coating weight of gelatin.
It is known that polymers having an acid group (or in the form of a salt) may be used together with gelatin which is a hydrophilic colloid in photographic materials. For example, JP-B-57-53587 (the term "JP-B" as used herein means an "examined Japanese patent publication"), JP-B-57-15375, West German Patent 1,745,061, JP-B-49-23827, JP-B-55-14415, JP-B-55-15267, JP-A-48-89979, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,279,410 and 3,791,831 and JP-B-47-28937 disclose that polymers having a carboxyl group are used to attempt to impart antistatic properties to the photographic materials. However, these patent specifications fail to disclose that the swelling ratio of the hydrophilic colloid layer is controlled by anionic high-molecular antistatic agents of this kind to expedite the drying rate of the light-sensitive materials. Generally, a large proportion of the anionic antistatic agent is used in a specific hydrophilic colloid layer, and a large amount of a hardening agent for gelatin is used to improve the physical properties of the layers. If it is intended to reduce the drying load by the control of the swelling rate after processing as in the present invention, the problems of residual silver and residual hypo are caused as described in JP-A-58-111933.
European Patents 75231 and 167081, JP-A-53-7231, JP-A-60-126674, JP-A-60-156056, JP-A-2-20861, JP-B-1-14574 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,142,894 disclose high-molecular matting agents having a carboxyl group. The matting agents primarily perform their function in such a way that the particles having a particle size of 0.2 to 10 .mu.m are exposed to light on the surface of the photographic material, and their function is indicated by the unevenness of the surface thereof. However, such coarse particles do not sufficiently control swell characteristics after processing in the present invention.
JP-A-2-207242 discloses that a polyacrylic acid derivative may be introduced into a light-sensitive material having an antihalation layer containing a high-molecular mordant having an ammonium structure and an anionic dye to improve the decolorizability of the anionic dye. However, this patent specification does not disclose the control of swell characteristics after processing by the use of polymers having a --COOH group. Further, the present inventors having studied the patent specification and found that the acrylic acid homopolymer described in the examples thereof does not have the effect of improving drying characteristics by controlling swell characteristics after processing where substantially no hardening agent is used.